In what was widely characterized as an escalation in the official impeachment inquiry now underway, House Democrats on Friday evening subpoenaed the White House for documents and material related to an effort by the Trump administration to have the government of Ukraine launch an investigation into the president's 2020 Democratic rival Joe Biden.
In a joint letter, Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, the Chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Reform, Rep. Adam Schiff, the Chairman of the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, and Rep. Eliot L. Engel, the Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, conveyed the subpoena to White House Acting Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney which requested key documents as part of the impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump announced last week by Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi.
"During a press conference on Wednesday," the letter states, "President Trump was asked if he would cooperate with the House impeachment inquiry. He responded, 'I always cooperate.' President Trump's claim is patently false. The White House has refused to engage with--or even respond to--multiple requests for documents from our Committees on a voluntary basis. After nearly a month of stonewalling, it appears clear that the President has chosen the path of defiance, obstruction, and cover-up."
Read the full letter sent to the White House here (pdf).
As Politico reports:
Democrats gave the White House a two-week deadline of Oct. 18 to comply with their demand, and they warned that Mulvaney -- a former House member himself -- that his "failure or refusal to comply with the subpoena, including at the behest of the President or others at the White House, shall constitute evidence of obstructing the House's impeachment inquiry and may be used as an adverse inference against you and the President."
"We deeply regret that President Trump has put us--and the nation--in this position," the Democratic chairmen wrote, "but his actions have left us with no choice but to issue this subpoena."
